Man Drives 100+ Miles For Birth Of Child That Woman Says Isn't His (Full Episode) | Paternity Court

You may be seated. Hello, Your Honor. Hello. This is the case of Miller v. Rasmussen. Thank you, Jerome. Good day, everyone. AUDIENCE: Good day. JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Miller, you are here to prove to your ex-boyfriend, Scotty Rasmussen,

that

he is not the father of your three-year-old daughter Zaylie Rasmussen. Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: You claim, you have been in an ongoing

court

battle over custody and have petitioned the

court

several times for a DNA test, all of which have been denied.

Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: Mr. Rasmussen, you claim the real reason Ms. Miller is denying you're Zaylie's father is because she hates you. Yes, Your Honor. You say, you've been there for your daughter her entire life and you are here today to prove you are Zaylie's father. RASMUSSEN: Yes, Your Honor. All right, Mr. Rasmussen, why is Ms. Miller saying you are not Zaylie's father? Your Honor, I believe it's out of pure hatred. RASMUSSEN: She doesn't want me to have

visitation. I drive 160

miles

, every other weekend just to pick up my daughter and drop her off. Over...

That

's about 10,000

miles

. RASMUSSEN:

That

's wear and tear on my car. She doesn't have a driver's license, she doesn't have any way to bring her to me. She doesn't have any way to meet me halfway. JUDGE LAKE: You say she hates you? RASMUSSEN: Yeah, she hates me. Why would... Why does she hate you? She hates me because at the end of the relationship when things got

rocky, I'll admit it, I did go to another

woman

. I will be the first to admit

that

. You know, it was my mistake. JUDGE LAKE: Is

that

true, Ms. Miller? No. It's not? MILLER: No. It's not at all. Tell me, what you believe to be true in this situation? Yes, I was very mad at him for being a cheater. He cheated on me through pretty much our whole relationship. No, I do not hate him because of

that

. I lost my respect for him, yes. JUDGE LAKE: He

says

, this is about visitation too. He

loves his daughter but you don't want him to have the visitation, is

that

true? Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: Why is

that

? Because I believe

that

the only reason why he wants the visitation, is to claim her on his taxes. (STAMMERING)

That

is the furthest thing from the truth. I... I want my visitation because my daughter means the world to me. I want to be in her life as much as I possibly can. I mean if he is driving 160

miles

each way every other weekend, the money he gets in his taxes, he

is spending in gas. RASMUSSEN: I am paying my

child

support. I have my

child

support payments right here. RASMUSSEN: Plus an additional $3 fee, plus an additional $60 annual fee. Just to pay my

child

support. JUDGE LAKE: You pay $50 a week. RASMUSSEN: Just under $50 a week. Plus

that

$3 with every check. Plus another $60 every year to the State. And

that

's not very much to get what she needs. Is it... I mean at the end of the month... Is it enough to buy her clothes

so she doesn't have to wear cut-off sweat pants and the same T-shirt every time I pick her up? I do

that

. Because... I don't want... It's just what it is. Is it enough money to buy her underwear so you don't gotta keep putting her in diapers at four years old? MILLER: I have underwear for her. And she is not in diapers, she is in pull-ups. She is in training right now. She is having problems. RASMUSSEN: She is not... But what he's saying, Ms. Miller, is... It's clearly

not about money, if he's paying his

child

support. And he also spends money, coming to see her. What is this really about for you? Why is it you don't want him involved in this

child

's life? Because I still believe

that

he is not hers. Okay, and listen,

that

's what we're here for. I want to get down to the bottom of the truth. Yeah. You don't believe he is her biological father. Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: So explain to me why? MILLER: When she

was conceived, she was conceived in March of 2011, he wasn't even in the same state. He was in Vegas. And at

that

time in March, I wasn't even with him. I was with somebody else. Because he broke up with me, because he cheated on me. I'll be the first to admit it, it was a mistake. Okay, we've gotten the fact

that

you two have an on-and-off relationship

that

has infidelity woven through. I understand

that

. Ms. Miller, you were stating to the

court

that

you were intimate with

someone else and you believe

that

you were intimate with

that

other person during the time Zaylie was conceived, and Mr. Rasmussen was all the way in Las Vegas. Yes, Your Honor. But, clearly at some point Mr. Rasmussen either thought or was informed

that

he was her biological father, because he is paying

child

support, he's still driving 160

miles

each way, and she has his last name. Yes. JUDGE LAKE: Mr. Rasmussen, fill me in, at what point were you ever told

that

you were not her biological

father. I believed, I was... And still believe, I was the only biological father until about five or six months or so, give or take after she was born. We were at family

court

, talking to the family

court

commissioner, about custody and the things

that

go along with

that

. Like where she would be going to school, her doctor and all

that

. And Ms. Miller brings it up

that

, I could possibly not be the father because of another man

that

was involved and she gave some date, I can't remember the

specifics. But one of the, uh, people we were talking to with the family

court

commissioner, did the math and it turns out

that

it would be a 10-month pregnancy and

that

don't make sense to me. Because it was so far, it was so long ago, I was confused about the dates. But now

that

I went through both of our Facebooks, I went through all of my notes, all of anything I wrote down, and I figured out

that

she was conceived in March and it was a nine-month pregnancy. JUDGE LAKE: So, Mr.

Rasmussen, up until Zaylie was five or six months old, you believed you were the only possible biological father.

That

is correct, we never broke up, there was never any,

that

I could recall, there was never any split there. There was, the relationship was on and off in a sense but we never... But by

that

time she was born, so, she already had your name. She already had my name. Did you sign the

birth

certificate?

That

is correct. Your name is on the

birth

certificate. I have

that

right...

Jerome, hand me

that

, please. I have

that

right here, my name is on

that

birth

certificate. So, you're on the

birth

certificate. RASMUSSEN: Yeah, I was at... You were at the

birth

? I was at the

birth

. I was at every single doctor's appointment. When Zaylie was born, you were at the doctor's appointment. I was at home because I had to work

that

day. I was at my job as a cashier. I got a phone call and I answered it. They said she was going into labor. I said,

"Okay," I hung up the phone. I quickly finished up as fast as I could with

that

particular customer. I turned off my checkout light, told the next customer in line

that

something came up and they'd have to go in another line. I went up to my manager, my immediate supervisor, said, "Hey, I gotta go, my girlfriend's in labor." I went home, quickly changed my clothes and I drove about 45

miles

through a windy, wooded road. In Wisconsin, in December, mind you, so it's

about a foot of snow on the ground. I made it to

that

hospital in less than 35 minutes. I beat her to the hospital. And I was there from the moment she got there, to the moment she was discharged. I called my boss at work and said, "Hey, I gotta take some days off, "I don't care if you fire me or whatever but I got to stay here. "My daughter's being born." MILLER:

That

's...

That

's a lie. After she was born...

That

was an amazing story. You say

that

was

a lie? Yes, it is. (LAUGHS) How do you remember it? After she was born, he was gone. He ran out of the room, I didn't see him for 20 minutes after

that

. While I was in labor, he was sitting on one of those hospital cot beds on his computer, in the corner not paying attention to me, in his own little bubble. RASMUSSEN: I admit I was on my computer but

that

was far from it. I had to find a way to calm myself because I was so excited to be a father. How often does a man beat the

woman

to the

hospital. Do you dispute, Ms. Miller,

that

he was excited about this beautiful little girl being born? MILLER: I really didn't see much excitement. JUDGE LAKE: You didn't? MILLER: No. Did he beat you to the hospital? Yes, because I had to wait for my aunt to come and get me. What was the problem exactly? You let him sign the

birth

certificate. I gave

that

baby... I gave my daughter my last name. Because we were engaged. And I thought we were going to get married. I thought we were going

to have a happy life, and raise our daughter together. Until about three months after she was born, one of his friends told me everything

that

he was doing throughout our entire relationship, cheating on me. Going to multiple places to meet multiple girls. And after

that

I was just... Done. Where is this other possible father? I'm not even quite sure. After we broke up, he changed his number, he moved, he pretty much disappeared. MILLER: I have tried to find him, I have tried to get ahold of

him and I can't find him. JUDGE LAKE: But you keep saying, Mr. Rasmussen cheated. He did this, he did

that

, and as wrong as

that

may be, you also slept with somebody else. We weren't even dating then. I was single at

that

time. Because he was with this other lady and I was the side chick. Which I didn't even really know about. All of this is happening and this man is continuing to step up to the plate like he has a daughter on the way. Like he has a newborn baby girl. Even through

the breakup, you all are making custody and visitation arrangements. But you know deep down there is another possible father. MILLER: Yes, Your Honor. Why wait so long to tell him? I told him the first time

that

we had our

court

dates. But the

court

s threw it out. Even before you tell anybody in

court

. What about just telling him? JUDGE LAKE: I wanna understand

that

. Why was it

that

you were keeping this information so close to your hip, until five, six months after Zaylie was born? The more she

grew up, the more I started noticing more of her features, the more she started looking like the other guy. She looks exactly like I did when I was three years old. I have a picture of me when I was three and a picture of her from just the other day. JUDGE LAKE: Let me see

that

. Will you hand

that

to me, Jerome? Believe it or not, when I was three years old, I had blonde hair. JUDGE LAKE: So this is a picture of Zaylie on the left, and you, as a

child

, Mr. Rasmussen, on the

right.

That

is correct, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: And you say you see a distinct similarity. Yes, I do. Do you see it, Ms. Miller? MILLER: Mmm-mmm. I don't JUDGE LAKE: You don't? You feel like Zaylie looks like the other gentleman you were intimate with. Yes. Look our... We even have the same chin. I am just noticing

that

now. Our chin looks exactly the same. We have the same dimples. JUDGE LAKE: You are insisting

that

Mr. Rasmussen is not the

child

's father. And yet,

you're receiving

child

support from Mr. Rasmussen. Have you petitioned the

court

to have Mr. Rasmussen taken off of

child

support? MILLER: I have told him a couple of times

that

if he would just sign her over to me then he wouldn't have to pay

child

support anymore. I'm not going to do

that

. If he would just... I'm not going to give up

that

easy. I'm fighting for what I know is mine. I know she is mine. (AUDIENCE APPLAUDING) JUDGE LAKE: So, Mr. Rasmussen, what type of

visitation do you have right now? RASMUSSEN: Right now it's, um, every other weekend. But I've had to jump through so many hoops to get to this point. At first it was

that

fly by night, just make a date whenever you want to and, you know, go from there. But obviously,

that

didn't work. And then, sometime after

that

, we started out where I had to sit with Ms. Miller and my daughter at a park for four hours, once a week, for four weeks. And then after

that

, I got her for four

hours, once a week, for four weeks by myself without her involvement. And then after

that

, I got her for one overnight a week, for four weeks and then after those four weeks, then I got what I have now. How is your relationship with Zaylie? Oh, it's phenomenal. Um, every time I get her, we try to make the best I can out of it even if I don't have any money from having to put gas in the car and pay the

child

support and everything. I try to do as much as I can with her, whether it be

something as little as going to the park or going fishing, or going to, you know, an amusement attraction. Every little memory at

that

age means more than anybody can possibly fathom. And I just try to make the absolute best out of what I can with what I have. So, Mr. Rasmussen, let me ask you, are you prepared, have you prepared yourself either way, if this

child

is my biological

child

or if she isn't? Have you thought about both alternatives? In a sense, yes, if it goes the way I am hoping

and I know in my heart

that

it will,

that

she is mine, I'm just going to be overjoyed,

that

all the drama and fighting and all

that

kind of stuff is behind me. If it goes the other way, I don't think if I had all the time in the world, I could, you know, prepare myself for such a bombshell. I don't think I'd be able to prepare myself for just how devastating

that

would be. Not only me but my entire family. Jerome, I think it's time for the results. JEROME: Okay. Thank you.

These results were prepared by DNA Diagnostics and they read as follows. I am fighting for what I know is mine. JUDGE LAKE: In the case of Miller v. Rasmussen, when it comes to three-year-old Zaylie Rasmussen, it has been determined by this

court

, Mr. Rasmussen, you... Are not the father. (MILLER EXCLAIMING) Ms. Miller. Be respectful. I'm sorry. JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Miller. I'm sorry.

That

's a lot of nerve, considering the alternative is somebody

that

don't want nothing to do

with you or your

child

. MILLER: I'm sorry.

That

's a lot of nerve! You just showed me where your priorities were, right there. I'm sorry. Because I held out hope.

That

you weren't just acting a fool, because you so mad at him, 'cause he cheated on you,

that

you would cheat your

child

out of a father. But

that

cheering you did... What you cheering? I'm a single mother with nobody

that

loves me or my

child

! What are you cheering for? MILLER: I'm not. No, you were! He is

over here breaking down because he loves this

child

so much. I sit here day after day after day with women hoping a man would drive 16

miles

to see their baby, much less 160

miles

each way. And abide by a

court

order and signed a

birth

certificate and come day after day and week after week so they can grow visitation to have a relationship with the

child

. And you have no compassion? For not just him but for Zaylie. She is three years old. JUDGE LAKE: Now, he is not just gonna be

heartbroken, we gotta break this news to her! And you are all over here cheering like it's a sport. JUDGE LAKE: This is this baby's life. And I asked you, "Where is this other man?" "I don't know." And you know he don't want nothing to do with you. Sitting up there cheering! Mr. Rasmussen, I am so sorry. I know this hurt you. Thank you, Your Honor. RASMUSSEN: I don't know what I'm going to do. She's my whole world. Everything I do is

for her. I... She was the reason I went to work every day. I know you have a bond with her. I feel like my whole world is in ruins now. Ms. Miller, I'm gonna say this to you before I adjourn

court

. JUDGE LAKE: Your

child

deserves to know who her father is. Whether or not

that

man wants to be in her life, physically present, and participate, he does have a legal obligation to help support her financially. It's important

that

you make this right. She'll one day ask, "Where is my

father?" Every action you take from this point, will write the story

that

you will later have to tell her. I wish you the best of luck. We have counseling for you.

Court

is adjourned.